Live facial recognition technology trial evaluation (1)

Sian Berry: When will the evaluation of the Metropolitan Police Service's live facial recognition technology trial start and when do you expect it will be completed?

The Mayor: The evaluation is currently being produced by Essex University and the National Physical Laboratory. The evaluation should be completed in the coming months.

Catalytic convertor theft strategy

Leonie Cooper: Please can the Metropolitan Police Service inform me what strategies or plans have been put in place to tackle theft of exhaust and catalyticconverters from cars? Have there been any patterns or trends noticed by the MPS?

The Mayor: Catalytic convertor theft has increased significantly since July 2018, peaking in November 2018. These crimes will be investigated by local officers as there is no dedicated resource to tackle the issue. Due to the nature of the offence, CCTV and forensic evidence are often limited or non-existent. There are no Secured By Design approved products to help prevent this crime, but after-market catalytic converter guards or anti-theft devices are available through some manufacturers.
Victims are advised to contact their vehicle manufacturer. Where the MPS become aware of specific trends, the MPS will contact the relevant manufacturers to discuss this further. Up to date crime prevention advice has been written and will be published on the MPS website.

Gang related sexual offences

Florence Eshalomi: Do the Metropolitan Police Service record gang-related sexual offences (in an analogous way to the recording of gang-related knife crime offences via a flag on police databases) and if so, how many such offences were recorded in 2018?

The Mayor: During 2018, 11 sexual offence crimes contained a gang flag. Eight of these offences were classified as rape, with the other three classified as other sexual offences.

Live facial recognition technology strategy

Sian Berry: What is the Metropolitan Police Service’s strategic plan for live facial recognition technology? Could you include details of the short-, medium- and long-term scenarios that have been considered or agreed, and any roadmaps or outline strategic plans?

The Mayor: The Metropolitan Police is developing its strategic approach to live facial recognition (LFR) technology. The independent evaluation of the trial of LFR soon to be published will provide the evidence base for a future road map however no decisions have yet been made.

Gender Breakdown of those supported under the Gang Exit Service Programme in London

Florence Eshalomi: Please can you provide a gender breakdown of individuals who have received support from the London Gang Exit Programme since its establishment in February 2016?

The Mayor: Between February 2016 and December 2018 London Gang Exit accepted referrals for 455 males and 46 females.

Rising London Crime and Police Cuts

Joanne McCartney: Do you agree with the Prime Minister’s assertion that there is no link between police numbers and rising crime?

The Mayor: No. There is no doubt that years of severe Government cuts to the Metropolitan Police Service - £850 million since 2010 - have had an impact on the ability to prevent crime and detect the perpetrators. Indeed, we have fewer police in London now in 2019 than at any time since 2003, despite a significant increase in population. Many of these cuts happened when the current Prime Minister was the Home Secretary responsible for policing.
I am doing the best to fill this gap, but the Government need to wake up to the reality – there is a link between the number of police officers and crime going up. With more than 70 per cent of police funding provided by the Government, ultimately the measures available to me cannot undo the damage of years of funding cuts and continued underfunding and I urge the government to give me the resources to protect all Londoners.

sanctioned detection rate for burglary

Andrew Dismore: Do you agree that the sanctioned detection rate for burglary in both Barnet and Camden is too low; and if so, what will you do to improve it?

The Mayor: My Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime scrutinised the Met’s arrest and sanction performance at the MPS – MOPAC Oversight Board on 29 November 2018.
The Met is committed to doing all it can to bring offenders to justice in the whole of London. With the implementation of MI investigation all frontline Police Officers are being developed to be effective crime investigators, being upskilled by Detectives whilst allowing C.I.D officers to focus on serious/complex crimes.
In January 2019, the MPS Commissioner and I set out plans to spend £85 million of new City Hall funding to tackle violent crime and burglary in the capital. There will be a major boost for Met Trace, the Met’s flagship burglary prevention programme which involves officers visiting homes to provide Londoners with crime prevention advice and delivering property-marking kits, which will significantly widen coverage and protect homes across the capital. Local police will continue to focus on work to prevent burglary and target those responsible and the additional funding will also support increased proactivity to both prevent and detect burglary.

Live facial recognition technology trial in Romford (2)

Sian Berry: Regarding the Metropolitan Police Service's two-day trial deployment of live facial recognition technology in Romford town centre in January 2019, how many people were: a) stopped by police officers for actively avoiding or refusing to be scanned, b) positively matched, and c) arrested or had other action taken against them from each of the groups in parts a) and b)?

The Mayor: No-one was stopped for avoiding or refusing to be scanned. Refusing to be viewed by the cameras on its own is not grounds to stop someone.
In total there were eight engagements with three confirmed positive matches. There were three arrests.

Crime Assessment Policy

Len Duvall: How is the Crime Assessment Policy being monitored to ensure that no crime that needs investigating is screened out?

The Mayor: The Met have recently conducted a full review of the General Investigations Policy which contains comprehensive Crime Assessment Principles that enable staff to properly assess all recorded crime and either close after initial investigation or progress for further investigation. Staff are encouraged and empowered to identify viable lines of enquiry in order to solve crime. Should further investigative opportunities become apparent on closed crimes then staff are encouraged to reopen these for further investigation and all supervisors will regularly monitor the application of these principles.